Rally Japan: Leg two summary

A tense daylong battle between overnight leader Petter Solberg (Subaru)
and Marcus Gronholm (Peugeot) ended pretty much as it started with the
Norwegian 32.3sec ahead. Although the time gap between the pair
differed by only 2.2sec from last...

A tense daylong battle between overnight leader Petter Solberg (Subaru)
and Marcus Gronholm (Peugeot) ended pretty much as it started with the
Norwegian 32.3sec ahead. Although the time gap between the pair
differed by only 2.2sec from last night, it did not tell the story of
the day. Gronholm was fastest on four of the first six stages to reduce
the deficit from 34.5sec to just 20.0sec. However, Solberg hit back
this afternoon to win four tests to widen the gap as Gronholm struggled
with transmission troubles. Sebastien Loeb (Citroen), second after leg
one, refused to be drawn into the battle. The Frenchman tested a new
tyre that was unsuited to the wet conditions this morning and
concentrated on preserving the podium place that would give him a second
world title tomorrow. Harri Rovanpera (Mitsubishi) moved ahead of Chris
Atkinson (Subaru) into fourth on the third stage but clipped a tree and
broke his lights on the penultimate test to drop back to fifth.
Team-mate Gigi Galli profited to climb into fourth. Atkinson fell behind
Francois Duval (Citroen) into seventh this afternoon but snatched sixth
back on the penultimate stage.

Leg two comprised 12 stages and 100.98 competitive kilometres. The Leg
was run through forests and farmland to the northeast of Obihiro with
another run through the Satsunai spectator arena on the outskirts of the
host town.

The morning started overcast and humid with light drizzle. Localised
heavy rain affected the morning stages and temperatures ranged from 9C
to 15C.

Citroen

After the twelve stages that made up Rally Japan's second leg, Sebastien
Loeb, Daniel Elena and their Citroen returned to this evening's service
park in Kita Aikoku in 3rd place. The Xsara of Francois Duval and Sven
Smeets continues to figure in 7th spot, the position they held this
morning.

Sebastien Loeb/Daniel Elena: It didn't take Sebastien Loeb long to see
that it would be difficult to fend off Marcus Gronholm. Pushing as hard
as he could in Emina (SS11), the Citroen driver saw his Finnish rival
close quickly from behind: "In fact my tyre choice wasn't as good as it
might have been in the conditions. As soon as I saw that despite pushing
hard it would be difficult to match the pace of Marcus, I decided not to
risk making a mistake." In the early part of Leg 2, Sebastien saw that
the stages had been cut up by the first pass. "The ruts were up to 30cm
deep and the stages weren't much fun. Consciously or otherwise, my mind
was made up to defend 3rd place. Marcus was too quick and, to make up
the 25s gap he had pulled out would have meant taking too many risks. In
our current situation, it would be foolish to make a mistake..."

Francois Duval/Sven Smeets: At the lunch-time break, Francois Duval was
pleased with his morning: "The going was very tricky, with a lot of deep
ruts which it was best to stay in. Despite my lack of experience with
the Xsara in such greasy conditions, I felt confident with the car and I
made a good tyre choice. It's been a good start to the day..;" The
second part of Francois's day went just as well as the first. In the
fight that is raging in the chasing pack, the young Belgian momentarily
passed Chris Atkinson into 6th place (SS18 & 19) but then fell back
behind the Australian driver. "I was a bit too cautious in the very
delicate Menan stage which was run in the dark, especially as my
headlights were set a little too high. I feel comfortable, I'm driving
at a good pace and there are four of us grouped within just 13 seconds.
It could be interesting tomorrow..."

Subaru

The Subaru World Rally Team had a successful day as Petter Solberg
continued to lead Rally Japan. The Norwegian collected five stage wins
during the Leg and pulled further ahead of the chasing pack. Petter will
start Sunday's final day of competition with a 30 second advantage over
his closest rival, Marcus Gronholm. Despite some extremely tricky road
conditions, Chris Atkinson also had an excellent day locked in an
intense battle for fifth place with some very experienced competitors.
Chris will start the final Leg just 10 seconds behind fifth-placed Harri
Rovanpera.

Petter Solberg/Phil Mills: It feels good, we're on target but there's
still a long way to go. I've pushed to the maximum today, perhaps a
little too much in the morning but my tyre choice was too hard and I had
no option. We gave away a lot of seconds for free on the first group of
stages but the afternoon was much better. It's not easy out there, the
stages have been terrible. My biggest fight today was not with Marcus,
it was with the roads. It's been a long time since I won a rally and
it's a feeling I want back. I'm sure Marcus will attack very hard
tomorrow, but I want this win very much indeed.

Chris Atkinson/Glen MacNeall: Although we dropped from fourth to sixth
it was still a good day. We are only 10 seconds behind fourth place and
very much in contention to achieve our aim for the weekend of a solid
result in the points. This morning's stages were very tough with the
roads pretty rough but the changes we made in the midday service
improved the set up for this afternoon's run. Throughout the day we
continued to play it safe to make sure we got through okay, we
sacrificed a little time in the process but we're still in the game.
With it being so close for a spot in the top five it is going to be an
interesting battle tomorrow on roads that we know well but our number
one aim is make sure we get to the finish ramp.

Ford

Today's marathon second leg of the Rally Japan ended with BP-Ford World
Rally Team continuing to hold eighth and ninth places. However, in
contrast to the opening day, it is Toni Gardemeister and Jakke Honkanen
who are eighth in their Ford Focus RS World Rally Car with Roman Kresta
and Jan Tomanek one place and 16.7 seconds behind in a similar car.

Toni Gardemeister/Jakke Honkanen: "I did a lot of sliding in the wet and
mud this morning but everything felt better than yesterday," said
Gardemeister. "I had more confidence and I improved but it's the most
difficult rally of the season so far. I had a lucky escape on the
second corner of Menan this morning. It was extremely slippery and I
was fortunate to stay on the road. On the same stage this afternoon I
missed a junction and stalled the engine, losing a few seconds. It was
hard to find good times this afternoon, although everything still felt
good. I can't gain any places tomorrow unless those in front of me hit
trouble. So I will work on improving the set-up and try to set some
good stage times."

Roman Kresta/Jan Mozny: "The roads were really, really rough this
afternoon. I hit a small bridge with the bumper but apart from that we
had no troubles. I tried hard but I didn't want to push too much in
case I made a mistake. The stages were slower today but this morning's
rain made them slippery," added Kresta.

Peugeot

After a flamboyant attack, Marcus Gronholm is up to second place on the
Rally Japan. The Finn is gradually catching the leader Petter Solberg,
to whom he closed to within 20 seconds half way through the day. Daniel
Carlsson ends the leg in a solid 10th, after a trouble-free run. Marcus
Gronholm, with a good tyre choice under him, was on a charge from the
start, setting three fastest times and two second-fastest times. During
the afternoon, an over-cautious tyre choice meant that he was less
competitive, and Marcus gave back some of the time he had gained from
Solberg in the morning.

Marcus Gronholm/Timo Rautiainen: "This afternoon was quite tricky for
us. For the last three stages we had a problem with the differential,
which meant that the handling of the car was quite difficult. Then on
the road section towards the superspecial we heard a noise from the
gearbox, which worried me. Luckily we were able to make it to the end
with no problems but it has not been easy. Tomorrow I do not think we
have a chance to catch Petter under normal circumstances so we just have
to do our best and get to the finish, which has been our aim throughout
the rally."

Daniel Carlsson/Mats Andersson: "I struggled to find a good feeling with
the car today: I am not quite sure why as the set-up was no different to
yesterday. In particular I didn't feel so confident over the stages with
big ruts. I thought that I was braking too early on most of the corners
but still I nearly went off a few times! But we're learning more with
every stage, so tomorrow we will just aim for a safe finish."

Skoda

Skoda Motorsport World Rally Team driver Armin Schwarz completed a solid
second leg of Rally Japan, maintaining his overnight in 12th place over
the day's 12 stages. Having retired from the event after rolling on
yesterday's seventh stage, Mikko Hirvonen and co-driver Jarmo Lehtinen
visited the service park. Jarmo went to Obihiro hospital this morning
where X-rays suggested that he had not sustained serious injuries
despite being in some discomfort but doctors will monitor him over the
next few days when he returns to Finland.

Armin Schwarz/Klaus Wicha: My pace notes have been better today and the
car has been fine. Unfortunately the roads have become very deeply
rutted, especially on the stages that have now been used four times, and
you can do nothing but follow the tracks.

Mikko Hirvonen/Jarmo Lehtinen: I feel very sorry for what happened
yesterday. If I'd taken the harder compound tyre that Michelin had
suggested then I'd still be in the rally and fighting for championship
points. I'm always very self-critical of my own performance so I hope
I'll get another chance to drive the Fabia WRC 05 and redeem myself. We
saw early on what it can do and I'm sure it is not so far away from a
good result.

Mitsubishi

The Mitsubishi Motors Motor Sports WRC team has enjoyed the most
consistent and successful two days of the season during the opening two
legs of Rally Japan, the team's home event and the 13th round of the FIA
World Rally Championship. Both "Gigi" Galli/Guido d'Amore and Harri
Rovanpera/Risto Pietilainen have performed faultlessly and the Lancer
WRC05 crews hold fourth and fifth positions respectfully going into the
final leg. Gilles and Herve Panizzi have increased their confidence and
maintain 13th position.

Harri Rovanpera/Risto Pietilainen: "Today has been a good day, but
losing the spot lamps was very frustrating", said Harri, who is
celebrating his son's fifth birthday, long distance. "We had the fog and
main lights, but this means nothing in the type of conditions we are
talking about. In the open sections of the stage it was reasonably okay,
but the minute you get under the trees and into the mud it is very
difficult. But, overall we have to be very happy with the performance".

Gilles Panizzi/Herve Panizzi: "We made some modifications to the shock
absorbers at lunchtime and for me the feeling is the best of the
weekend, so we won't be making any major changes", said Gilles. "The
support for the rally along the road sections today has been amazing; at
each set of red traffic lights I've been signing about 10-15
autographs!"

Gigi Galli/Guido d'Amore: "Today has been another very long day, tiring,
but very satisfying at the end and I am happy", said Gigi. "To be honest
I have never, ever, seen such tricky stages in my life. We had a similar
problem to Harri with the lights, but still had two lamps working so it
was slightly easier for us. This morning I didn't want to take more
risks than necessary; the event is already difficult enough, there is no
point risking more. Tomorrow we'll continue to push, but only at the
pace I am comfortable".